


promises i'll keep

by neroh



Series: my saints fallen [2]
Category: Kingsman: The Secret Service (2015)
Genre: Abandonment, Angst, M/M, Post-Canon Fix-It
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-04-15
Updated: 2015-04-15
Packaged: 2018-03-23 01:20:15
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,431
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3749653
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/neroh/pseuds/neroh
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Eggsy returns home.</p>
            </blockquote>





	promises i'll keep

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you to Bre for betaing this and for everyone who has left such lovely comments on the first story in this series.

“You will feel a pinch, but it won’t hurt much.”

There is pressure on his arm, holding it face upward towards the ceiling.

“Galahad?” Merlin asks. A moment passes without reply. “Eggsy?”

That gets his attention; Merlin saying his nickname. Usually he addresses him by his code, sometimes Gary, other times Mr. Unwin.

Eggsy turns to him, blinking, and nods. “A pinch you said, yeah?”

“Right,” the older man says with uncertainty. “From the needle. The actual tracking device is small enough that you’ll barely feel a thing when it’s reimplanted in your arm.”

Eggsy shrugs, glancing down at his rolled up skin and fair skin. “Get on with it then,” he tells Merlin with a careless gesture.

He barely feels the burn of the needle or the tracking device being pushed into his arm. Eggsy knows it’s happening and that it _should_ hurt, but he’s numb.

At least that’s the only way he can describe it.

He’s back in England and at the Kingsman headquarters, where he has just completed a full medical evaluation.

Eggsy has been poked and prodded and questioned. He gives clipped answers that he is sure that Merlin can see through and submits himself to whatever test Dr. Hanover decides to run, all without complaint.

_Do you know who kept you? Were they a part of the Jackal Collective?_

_Did they interrogate you while you were under their care?_

_Can you give us details of your stay?_

_Do you recall what other medical treatment you were given? Anything unusual?_

_Did you see anyone?_

The last one drives an invisible dagger into Eggsy’s heart, though he hides the pain well enough.

He wouldn’t dare tell them about Harry. Hell, he’s not even sure if it was real; Harry Hart had come back into his life and retreated so quickly that Eggsy wonders if he imagined the entire thing. A post-traumatic spirit animal, perhaps.

If the lingering ache in his bottom is anything to go by, Harry hadn’t been a hallucination.

 _You could have told me,_ Eggsy had told him. _I wouldn’t have said a word to no one._

Merlin is applying a bandage to the entry wound with nimble fingers. “I suspect you’d like to go home now,” he comments awkwardly. While brilliant, Merlin has never been one for idle chit chat.

“If you don’t need me for anything else,” Eggsy says.

The senior Kingsman sighs and stares him straight in the eye. “You seem out of sorts,” Merlin tells him. “Is there anything else I should know about?”

“I have jet lag,” Eggsy declares, irritated. Apparently, the older man wants the Galahad who talks back and oozes sarcasm. “You’ve heard of it, yeah? I’d like to go home and sleep in my own bed, if that’s alright with you.”

Merlin raises a brow towards the span of skin that should be his hairline. “It’s quite alright with me,” he replies. “I will see you home, if you don’t mind.”

“Not much of a choice, innit?” the younger Kingsman grouses as Merlin goes to put away his things for the night.

“I’m afraid not,” Merlin sympathizes as he grabs his laptop bag. “The Kingsman tend to be wary when one of their own is held captive during a mission and suddenly located. You do realize how strange this all is?”

Eggsy rolls down his sleeve and fastens it at his wrist. “Like Alice goin’ down the rabbit hole,” he mutters, much to Merlin’s confusion. Eggsy scowls. “ _Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland_? Lewis Carroll, yeah?”

“Ah yes,” the elder Kingsman replies, suddenly understanding. “A reasonable comparison. Come, let’s get you home.”

To hear Merlin say that he’s going home is bittersweet. Eggsy can’t wait to see his mum and Daisy, and JB, of course. He wonders if the pug has been eating the food that his little sister tends to drop on the kitchen floor or how his mum’s nursing classes are going.

It’s only been ten days, eleven if he counts the day it took him to travel back to England, since he’s seen his family. Eggsy has been gone longer and even further away, but he _needs_ to be back in his own surroundings.

He knows to expect Daisy’s shriek of laughter when JB licks her face or that his mum will be at her book club on Wednesday evenings. JB will always sleep in his bed when Eggsy is home and curl up under his cheek, snoring the night away.

These occurrences bring him a sense of stability, which has been severely altered since Harry came and went from his life.

Eggsy hopes that by being home, he will put it behind him and chalk it up to… _something_.

A nightmare.

A dream.

He has no idea.

Only that as he and Merlin get into the latter’s automobile, that Eggsy is one step closer to home.

 

* * *

 

“My poor baby,” Michelle Unwin exclaims as she answers the front door. She is careful when she puts her arms around Eggsy and gives him a kiss on the cheek before cupping his face. “Hamish said you looked a bit peaky.”

Eggsy shifts his eyes to Merlin, who stands behind him looking rather uncomfortable. The older man clears his throat and says, “Well, he did manage to throw out his back, Ms. Unwin.”

“You should be more careful, sweetheart,” his mum sighs, leading the two men into the house. The smell of their dinner wafts through the air, spaghetti with marinara sauce. “What on _earth_ were you doing?”

Merlin rescues him, clearly having contrived a false backstory to the young Kingsman’s absence. “We were helping a client move some product,” he replies. “In Madrid.”

“Right,” Eggsy quickly agrees. “I didn’t lift with my knees.”

His mum scowls at her eldest child, the sort of look that’s a cross between mirth and worry, and shakes her head. “Gary,” she says. “You really ought to be more careful. I know you’re young, but back injuries can be serious.”

“And who will be able to give Daisy piggy-back rides?” he quips, forcing a smile as he hears the sound of JB’s nails against the floor.

The dog comes barreling in like a cannon and is looking up at Eggsy with his big brown eyes before any of them can utter another word.

“Looks like someone missed you,” Merlin states as the younger man kneels down to pick up the dog.

JB is already attacking Eggsy’s face with his tongue and whining so loudly that it makes the hairs on the back of his neck stand up. “Alright,” the Kingsman says, trying to avoid the pug’s tongue. “I get it! You missed your favorite person in the entire world and you never want me to leave again.”

“Oh don’t let Daisy hear you say that,” his mum teases, reaching to scratch behind JB’s floppy ear. “You’ll likely make her cry. Which reminds me, I should to wake her from her nap.”

She runs upstairs, leaving Eggsy and Merlin in the living room with the dog. JB has finally settled down and is now dozing off in his owner’s arms.

“Well,” the older man says. “I should leave you. It seems you have some catching up to do.”

Eggsy nods. “When should I report in?”

“Two weeks,” Merlin replies as he opens the door. “And Arthur will be wanting to meet with you next Monday.”

That he expected, but if truth be told, the new Arthur scares the shit out of him. She’s a nice enough woman who reminds Eggsy of that bird who played M in the newer Bond films. Arthur has the same steely eyes and short cropped white hair, though she’s not as harsh as M.

In fact, she has always been nothing but pleasant towards the young Kingsman.

“Am I in for it?” he asks, sounding a bit nervous.

Merlin shakes his head. “Nothing like that,” he assures. “She just wants to check in with you. Make sure you are well…that sort of thing.”

“Is that before she sends me to the firing squad?”

The older man removes his glasses to squeeze the bridge of his nose. “No, Galahad,” Merlin grumbles. “There will be no firing squad present during your meeting. Unless you want me to put in a request.”

Eggsy stares down at JB’s face and shrugs. “I can live without it,” he tells his boss. “Can you live without a firing squad, pup?”

JB snorts his reply and adjusts his head against Eggsy’s bicep.

“Well then, I’ll be off,” Merlin says as a way of goodbye. He pauses in the doorway and turns back to Eggsy. “I suspect you’ll be hearing from Lancelot soon. Do try not to irritate her, she is always in a mood when you’ve been teasing her and with all the paperwork I have to fill out because of your misadventure, I can’t be arsed to deal with it.”

“I do nothing of the sort,” Eggsy states in false innocence.

Merlin rolls his eyes. “Right. Night, Galahad.”

The front door shuts just as Michelle comes down the stairs with a sleepy Daisy in her arms. “Oh, did Hamish leave? I was going to invite him to stay for supper,” she says as Eggsy is locking the door.

“Maybe next time,” he tells her while he sets JB on the floor.

Daisy is rubbing the sleep from her eyes with a chubby fist when she spies her older brother. “Eggsy!” she shrieks, going from tired to fully awake in less than ten seconds. She flings out her arms, clearly wanting to be held. “Eggsy! Eggsy!”

“Hello, petal,” he greets over the sounds of JB’s enthusiastic barking as he lifts her from their mum’s arms, holding her close. He inhales the baby scent that still lingers—of fresh powder—and gives Daisy a kiss on the cheek. “Were you a good girl for mummy?”

Eggsy listens to his little sister tell him about her day at school and the fairies that live in her closet as his mum starts setting the table. “Do you need help?”

“No, you just keep Daisy entertained,” she replies with a smile, a real one. Life without Dean has been good for all of them and it’s the first time since his father died that Eggsy has seen his mum happy.

Supper is a simple affair: Daisy makes a mess and drops noodles on the ground for JB’s consumption, his mum tells Eggsy about her classes and the latest book she’s reading for her club, and he avoids telling her what really happened to him.

Not that she’d believe him.

After the leftovers have been put into Tupperware and the dishes are put into the wash, the three of them take JB on a walk before it gets too late.

By the time they arrive back at the house, Eggsy is more tired than he thought he’d be.

“You should wash up before bed,” his mum gently insists.

He is helping Daisy out of her jacket. “What about helping you put this one down?”

“Gary,” she says, brushing a lock of his hair off his forehead. “You worry too much, sweetheart.”

Eggsy manages a lopsided grin. “Someone has to.”

“And someone needs to make sure that you get your rest,” his mum tells him, patting his cheek. “You can help tomorrow, love. Now go get ready for bed.” She looks down at JB. “And you make sure he does what his mum told him to do.”

The pug barks in agreement, turning his bug eyes to Eggsy.

“Traitor,” he grumbles as he heads upstairs.

 

* * *

 

It’s late at night and Eggsy is still awake in his bed. Hours have passed since Daisy and his mum went to sleep, the latter coming in to give him a kiss goodnight.

His thoughts drift to Harry. How could they not?

Eggsy looks out the window where the full moon is coating everything in its path with a silvery cast, wondering if Harry is seeing the same thing.

Or if he even cares.

JB huffs against his neck, letting out a dreamy bark that reminds Eggsy of the pug’s first attempts at being a dog. He recalls how the little bundle of tawny fur jumped when he made a sound and how his tail wagged, clearly pleased with himself.

“You wouldn’t have liked where I’d gone,” Eggsy whispers, his eyes still focused on the moon. “It was cold, colder than here, I reckon, and the food was crap.”

The pug curls up tighter, his feet brushing against his master’s shoulder. Eggsy scratches JB’s back and haunches.

“I got shot, JB,” he says, still surprised to hear the words come from his own mouth. “It felt like my back was on fire… I don’t remember much of it, but I do remember that. Kind of hard not to.” Eggsy sighs and tilts his head, allowing the pug’s fur to brush against his skin. “And then something happened, JB.”

He remembers Harry’s naked skin by lamplight, the way it glowed and how it rolled with the movement of the older man’s muscles. There is the memory of the press of his lips against Eggsy’s, the way Harry tasted on his tongue.

 _Beautiful,_ Harry had said to him. _You’ve always been beautiful to me._

Eggsy feels tears welling up in his eyes. He had been so certain that they had long since dried up before the Kingsman recovery team came storming into the manor house.

None of them had known that only hours before, he and Harry had fucked upstairs. That they had eaten a dinner of homemade pizza in the nude and gone back to the older man’s bed.

That Eggsy had woken up alone and discarded without a single care.

“I can’t tell you what,” he whispers, trying to keep himself from crying out. Tears slip down his cheek, burning the skin in their path. “You’ll think I’m mad. They’ll all think I’m mad, everyone last one of them. They’ll put me away and throw away the key. Mum and Daisy… I can’t let anything happen to them.”

Eggsy wipes one side of his face with the inside of his elbow and sucks in a deep, shuddering breath. “And I said I wouldn’t tell a soul,” he whimpers. “I made a promise, JB. I shouldn’t have done it, but I did.”

He doesn’t know how long he cries before the tears stop and he’s able to fall asleep, but Eggsy does realize one thing as he drifts off in his own bed.

Heartbreak isn’t something he fancies.


End file.
